Diaries of a Band
by Otakubandie7
Summary: A first-hand perspective from the members of the '09 marching Hornet Band, during their BOA year. Completely fiction. '09 hasn't started yet!
1. Band Camp: Day One

**Diaries of a Band**

Created and Written by members of the 2009 Marching Hornet Band

**Directors: **Roy Anderson and Wesley Collins**Caption Heads: **Leanne Judson, Lester Marcus, Patch Nelson**Drum Majors: **David Steele, Katherine Snow

Show Title: _"Band Is…"_

**First Day of Band Camp ****(**_**Fun**_**damentals Day)**

**Flute Player: Alaina: Junior**

_Today was okay for the first day back. I'm really really excited about the new freshies! They're so cuuute! I remember when I was a little freshman back in the day…It's very surreal thinking about it. But oh my god, my arms hurt so bad…Our flutes aren't that heavy, but it really takes a lot of strength to hold them up. And marching? I am totally not in shape to do this. Of course, no matter how hard it gets, there's that really hot snare drummer, Colin, who is next to me for like, 3 sets! That makes everything worth it!_

Our section leader, Rachel, seems okay…When she's not being a total _bitch__ (jerk. We're not supposed to cuss in here!) about the freshmen. It's like she's waiting for some excuse to make the poor things scared. And…Well, I can't really stick up for them because they're freshmen, but you know…It still makes me a little angry to see that. And we have this cute little Asian boy in our section this year. He seems scared. I wonder if he can teach me how to speak some Asian..._

The band seems okay this year. It's not gonna be as good as last year because JAKE (Hearts, hearts, love, kisses) isn't drum major, but I think it'll be alright. The trumpets are stupider than ever. I mean, they're cute but they're totally not my type. Besides, I've got my eye on Colin. And there's that one boy in the pit who I could be seen with without committing social suicide. And I might even go as far to say that there's a tuba guy who…Well…He's cute, but low brass? Ew…Not gonna happen. and the new guy, Marcus…They are always yelling at the trumpets. This doesn't surprise me, but they're getting annoying. I want to go over there and smack the trumpet section leader. If this keeps up all season, it won't be long before I go up to one of them and kick their butts…Hah, like that'll ever happen. I don't want to waste my time, anyway. Stupid brass…

_Yeah, so everyone's really serious about this year because it's our BOA year. Our show is called "Band Is…" and…Well, nobody really knows what it's about. The directors won't tell us what the point of the show is. They keep telling anyone who asks that they need to figure it out on their own. Whatever…Anderson's just being a dork as usual. I got my music today and it's really complex. I think I have to compete with Rachel for the solo, too…Oh whatever. Anyway, I've written a lot. I'm so tired…And I have to drive like, fifteen people home. What am I, a taxi service?Whatever, okay, I'm done._

-Alaina Simmons  
_____________________________

**Clarinet Player: Souji: Freshman**

_The girls in this section are a little bit scary…I cannot understand why they keep freaking out whenever I talk. I wonder if it is my accent? I am a little bit short than the normal freshman boy, but…I do not know…I have not been in the US long enough to understand the girls here. They seem very vain and I believe there is even this one girl who could kill me with a stick from a popsicle.  
This is a little bit scary. I do not know if I am going to fit in here. I do not know why the teachers have want to let me write in this…What do you say it? Journal? They seemed very excited about me writing. I wish I do not let them down._

The trumpet leader is nice. He offered to teach me his 'skillz'. I do not know what that means. I will have to talk him about it later. Actually, it can be better just to stay away from him.

There is one girl in my section who is always talking to herself about death and destruction. She scares me. I do not want to be impolite and judge her based off of her death thinking, but I think I want to stay away from her too. She is the only one oboe player in the band.

_I am not sure about anything. There is one other boy in my section, but he is always surrounded by girls. I wonder if he is gay. I can not understand Americans yet. Back home, no one is so outward about their sexuality. He confuses me…He asked me if I was a ninja. I wonder if all of the people here are racist. I think I saw a girl in my section fighting another girl in the hallway. And there is one other girl who never talks to anybody. She worries me. She will not look into anyone's eyes but me. I wonder if I am already becoming a target…I would like to go somewhere where it is less crazy, but I am a woodwind.  
I am doomed. _

_-Souji Minegawa_

_**==Souji, welcome. Hope everything works out for you this season!==**_

**-Mr. C**

____________________________

**Oboe Player: Samantha: Sophomore**

_Dear Diary,  
__Band this year is like the dark gaping abyss that is my life…It's like a consuming black hole that swallows me up with no remorse. I'm going to die here, I just know it. I can feel it in my blood…(I bleed black…) And it doesn't help that the blackness of my soul attracts the sun's penetrating rays…It burns so much…Once you're so far into the dark, even subtle things like fluorescent lighting in the band room can be like hot, burning, torturous flames that devour your body until you're nothing but a pile of despair labeled 'ash'._

"Here lies Samantha, the oboe player that nobody loved."_ And on my tombstone it would say: "Not even the last chair bassoon player could love her. Rest in Pieces."  
Pieces…Shards of a shattered reality…So broken that my body leaked blackness from every pore. So broken that eye shadow, stage makeup, mascara, and torque pants couldn't even cover it up. _

_Band this year is like the contaminating pink paint splatter on my perfectly black heart. It's like the safety cap on my anti-depressants…It's like the hot sauce in my milkshake…It's like the sun behind my rain cloud…__This is torture…And why doesn't he notice me? It kills me a little bit more every time I see him with that girl…She's everything I'm not…  
I'm hopeless…  
I hate my life…_

_-Sam Snow_

_**==Sam, see me after practice. 7-23-09==**_

-Mr. A

____________________________

**Saxophone Section Leader: Andrew: Senior**

_I'm finally section leader. It only cost me an arm and a ligature to get here, too. An arm and a ligature…*Sigh* I am such a nerd. But that's okay. At least I know what I'm doing. Not like that idiot Sean. I've never met such an arrogant incompetent trumpet section leader. The guy spends his sectional time talking about junk like Halo 3 and World of Warcraft. Hey, nothing on WoW, but band isn't the place to talk about it! He should be doing his job like the rest of us.  
But enough about him…He's not worth my keystrokes._

My section looks promising. We got 6 new freshmen. Most of them are good, but they're shy. And there is this one kid who can't sit still for a minute. The guy is like…Wiggling. Wiggling at attention. When he's not talking or whispering, he's fidgeting. It's apparent that the kid needs some pills. Soon. I don't want to deal with another Carl.

Speaking of Carl…He's a little quieter this year, but he never stops questioning my authority. He's somehow convinced himself that HE should be section leader. I'd like to give him a shot at it, just to prove a point, but I don't think he'd get it. He's a brilliant player. Nobody can argue with that. But he needs to work on his attitude.

Aside from all this band stuff and leadership stuff, I want this year to FLY. I am SO ready to get the hell outta here. T

his inter-band journal keeping thing is new. I wonder what Collins and Anderson are trying to accomplish by making us do it. I mean, if it were just the seniors, it would make sense…But they've even got freshmen writing in these things. Huh. Well, maybe they'll let us know later.

-Drew Wilcox

____________________________

**Trumpet Player: Bryan: Senior**

_PH34R! Heck yeah, our section is gonna PWN this year! FTW!  
I love playing my trumpet. It makes me automatically right…And I can show off my Skillz. I almost love playing trumpet more than I love playing my girlfriend! Almost! Haha._

I don't understand what Drew's problem is…And I don't get why the directors are always yelling at US…We do everything perfect! We PWNZ all teh noobz! We is the m4zt4z of the band! We play around all the time, but we know what we're doing. I also don't get why the guy in front of me keeps insisting that he's better than me. Maybe he can't accept the reality that he's just not up to my level. Poor idiot…I feel sorry for everyone who isn't me. *Sniff* A tear shed for those who are teh suxxorz. :[ 

_I wish that creepy oboe girl would leave me alone…I frown upon the idiot who created woodwimps. This childishness has gone on long enough. Obviously the brass are superior. And I am the superiorest of everyone. I own j00, fool!_

But she scares me. I think she wants to die. Emo kid…Go cry in a corner. This is what the contamination of woodwinds has come to. I must make sure no brass player becomes contaminated by the zombie oboe player. From now on, I protect mai friendz.  
Ph34r….

**-Bryan Sykes**

_**==Bryan, next time write something relevant and that makes sense to normal people! I would take this out if I hadn't signed that contract to keep everything unabridged!==**_  
-Mr. A

___________________________

**Mellophone Player: Josh: Sophomore  
**_  
Okay…So pretty much everyone in the band knows that I'm gay now. Why the homophobia? None of the guys will talk to me or like, stand next to me. It's like they expect me to hit on every male I see. I won't deny that a hella lotta them are hot…__Or that I have my fantasies about some of them shirtless__, but it's not like I LIKE them. __Everyone has fantasies, right? __Band is great. I couldn't ask for better freshmen…But I'm afraid that if they find out, they'll like, hate me. I'm gay. What's the big deal? If I was a lesbian, all the guys would be thrilled to hang out with me. I'm not going to come on to everyone, so they've really got nothing to worry about!So anyway…This is strange. I'm not big on writing. Things are okay. Got my eye on a clarinet guy. Think there could be something between us…But…It just depends. He seems nice enough, but I don't know if he's gay too…And maybe I shouldn't write about him, just in case someone in band reads this…Just in case HE reads this._

_I don't know what Collins and Anderson want us to write about. Meh. They need to choose someone else, I'm not very good at this._

-Josh Peters

_**==Josh, next time try to focus more on the band and less on your social life. We're pulling for you, though.==**_

**-Mr. Collins : )**

____________________________

**Trombone Player: Amy: Freshman  
**_  
Wow, my section is perverted…I guess being the only girl AND the only freshman kind of alienates me a little, but…I guess as long as I can belch, scratch my balls, and play, I'll be okay. *Rolls eyes* I mean, even the older guys are a little immature. I'm not saying I don't like them…When they're not being disgusting, they seem cool. (In other words, when they have an instrument on their faces) And they all seem real close. I wonder if I can fit in with that kind of thing…  
From what I've heard they have their section sleepovers and stuff. I really don't want to know what they do at those sleepovers…_

I don't think it's going to work out. The chemistry is great between the guys, but I'm not sure if I'm gonna make it. Maybe I'll switch to Euphonium…At least they don't seem like a fraternity. Although, there's this really nice kid named Brandon…He might be worth staying for. I think he's an upperclassmen, though. Not dating material for someone like me, but maybe we could become friends.  
Too much testosterone…Jeez.

There's an oboe girl that really caught my eye. I think she's the only one in her section. Rumor has it that she killed the other two…because they just disappeared halfway through the season…Creepy.

-Amy Mapes

_____________________________

**Euphonium Co-Section Leader: Adam: Junior**_-----Skipped entry with the excuse that he was 'Sorting out a problem' with the flute section leader-----_

**(Confirmed by Mr. Anderson, 7-23-09)**

**==That's BS, and everyone knows it.==**

- David Steele

**==David, we all appreciate your concern, but we've already discussed the matter. This doesn't concern you. Please try to refrain from making unfounded accusations.==**

=Anderson

**==It's not unfounded! You all know perfectly well that he's my best friend and that I know exactly what's going on with him. This is ridiculous!==**

-Steele

**==Drop it, David.==**

**-Collins**

**==David, see me immediately.==**

-Anderson

_____________________________

**Tuba Section Leader: Beth: Senior**

_Band this year better be incredible. I want us to totally kick ass at BOA. Just thinking about how close we were to winning two years ago makes me cringe. This year, we better win it!  
There's good chemistry in my section this year. It's not like the drumline, because God knows, there will NEVER be a section who is as tight as them, but it's good. I'm expecting a lot from the guys this year. They'd better damn well respect me, too.  
I think Chris is a little bit mad that he didn't make section leader, because Chris and I have been in this together from the beginning and he was always more dedicated than I was, but I think that the directors are convinced that I can handle the job better than he can. Honestly, I think his ADHD might play into it a little bit as well. I almost felt bad when I made the position because I saw the look on his face…But he needs to understand that you don't need a position to be a leader. I told him that I'd give him opportunities to lead, but I hope that he leads mostly by example._

He's a good guy. I know he's in it for the right reasons. But the fact of the matter is, I made the position. It's my job to teach and his job to follow. But still …I can't help it. I think I'll still end up treating him like a co-section leader. Anyway, it looks as though we're going to have about three freshmen, which is exciting. Maybe Chris can take Jordan (I think that's his name) aside and work with him on his posture. That would be a leadershippy thing to do.

'Leadershippy'…Oh hell…

Beth Erickson

____________________________

**Drumline Captain: Colin: Senior  
**_  
"Andrew Sanders was the best drumline captain in history."  
"Andrew Sanders left a legacy."  
"Andrew Sanders was the epitome of a leader."  
"Andrew Sanders could play sixteenth note diddles with his KNEES."  
"Andrew Sanders made the tenor drums look incredibly easy."  
"Andrew Sanders could break a drumhead just by staring at it.""  
Andrew Sanders will never be replaced."_

And now here I am, Colin Sanders, expected to uphold the legacy that my brother left behind. Not to sound whiny or anything, but I'm currently living in a pretty big shadow. My brother was incredible at a lot of things, I'll give him that, but…He wasn't as great as people thought he was. 

_I wish Patch would lay off me a little bit. I know I can't tell him to chill out, because I'll come across as someone who's not up for the job…And I know that I AM the one who has to make all of these drummers into a clean line. Who else is gonna do it and do it the right way?  
Eh…It's just a lot to live up to with my brother and all. We've got a cool feature in the middle of the show. The snares have this crazy lick with a dittie-cheese-grid sort of feel. It looks kind of like corps stuff. Really complex.  
Speaking of corps, I'm trying to march with Vanguard. I have auditions coming up in November. Should be interesting. I'm sure I'm good enough to make it on the line, but the money situation could be a problem. Ah, who knows? Whatever happens will happen, I guess. I really want to make it, though. I've been practicing all summer. Even at work. And even Patch says I've improved a lot since the beginning of last year.  
Well...Everyone's been kind of tense at rehearsal. It's probably just everyone trying to get a feel for the new chemistry of the line. A lot of people don't understand that the drumline takes the hardest hit each year. We have to keep re-working our technique and adjusting everything about ourselves as the seniors leave and the freshmen and underclassmen move up from pit to the line. It takes a while for everyone to adjust mentally as well. The focus of everyone wavered a lot today and the basses weren't quite in time with the rest of the battery. That's to be expected, since we have two new freshmen on bass three and five. They're just going to have to step it up this season. We can't afford to let new people bring us down.  
It might have just been a 'first-day-of-camp-trying-to-get-back-in-the-zone' sort of thing. I hope it was. Things will work out in the end. Hopefully._

Nah. I'll just kick some peoples' asses if they don't get up to snuff quickly. It's what my brother would've done. Nobody knew that side of him. Anyway, someone needs to go clean up the percussion cabinet. Stupid low brass thought they could hide their disgusting five-year-old sandwiches in there and get away with it. Again.  
I'm out.  
  
Colin Sanders_****_

==Colin, if they do it again, tell me and I'll take care of it.==

Patch

____________________________

**Pit Player: Lois Cox: Freshman**

_Patch is so weird…That noodle thing was just too much..._

Wow...Everything is so unorganized and hectic. And I don't think this is a recurring thing. We must be the first class to actually make Patch and Dennis BOTH yell on the first day. Well…We'll see how this all plays out. I'm shooting for the vibes, but Dennis says upperclassmen get first dibs. Oh well…Whatever I get, at least I'm not on battery. Those guys carry those huge drums around all day. No thank you! They must be completely beat by the end of the season…And probably completely ripped too. I bet they all look gorgeous without shirts …

They expect me to write an entire page on this? Every week? It's gonna be a long year. I don't even have anything to say yet…I mean, I don't know anybody since I just moved here and everything…I don't know. Whatever. I'm just glad we don't have to march. That must suck. A/C is the best invention on the planet.

-Lois Cox

_____________________________

**Head Drum Major: David Steele: Senior**

_Well…I'm finally here. I'm drum major. After all of the years I spent attending leadership training and Dr. Tim workshops, it's finally all paid off. And it's a BOA year, too.  
We've never made it to Finals in BOA. Two years ago, we missed it by .3. Everyone was crushed. Let me tell you, I do NOT plan on letting that happen again. Nobody should have to experience such a fallout after working so hard. Especially not these new freshmen. It would crush them.  
It almost crushed me._

That will NOT happen this year. This year is going to be the best damn year in Hornet history. Just watch. And I'm going to be the best damn leader I can. I have so many tools and so much experience. I just know I'm the right person. I just know that somehow, this year is going to be better than any other year thus far. I am SO ready to kick some BOA ass. (Sorry Anderson, I know we're not supposed to cuss)

First day of band camp…Well…It went like any other first day. We had our problems, yeah, but everyone has problems on the first day back. Nothing major…Except for Adam...  
He's been…Weird lately. I know exactly what's been going on with him, but the directors won't hear me out. Maybe they just don't want to believe the truth. Maybe they just don't want to deal with how serious the problem is…But I'm not the kind of person to let things like that slide. Even if he is my best friend…I'm still a leader. I'm still required to turn him in. And if I don't, I'm not being a good friend…Because it's just to help him.

But nothing's going to help him if Anderson and Collins don't listen to me. It doesn't set a great tone, them not listening…Makes me wonder what's going to happen the next time I try to bring up an issue that needs to be addressed. If they don't trust me, they need to find a different drum major. Someone they DO trust. Because this can become a serious problem if it keeps up.

Anyway…I guess that's all. Am I the last one to write in here? Huh.

-Steele

_**==David, we need to talk.==**_

**-Collins**

__________________________

Roy Anderson: Head Band Director

_I don't even have to take into account all of the entries in this journal to know that the upperclassmen are really serious this year. There's something different about the vibe. I think it mostly comes from the seniors, because this is their last shot to make Hornet History and have us advance to Finals at BOA; something that has never before been accomplished at this school.  
Chemistry this year seems better than ever. Especially that drumline. Whew! Patch is drilling them harder than ever for the first day back. And good thing, too. It's good for them._

The freshmen seem to be getting along okay. Nobody's complained about bullying or anything to that extent, but I'm not really surprised about that. Last year's class is gone, so we shouldn't have too many problems with the upperclassmen and the freshmen. I might actually not have to deal with angry parents for a change. (Yeah right...They'll find SOME reason to be angry. Always do)

Things are looking up. Our new uniforms came in last week and everyone's really excited about the new look. With so many new additions to the staff, what with Lester and Leanne and Mark (whom we don't see much of), the entire attitude of the band has been...well, changed. And I think that's a good thing. Tradition is important, don't get me wrong, but so is change.

Ahhh...Reminds me of my corps days. New staff, new uni's, new show, new people, new group...New attitude.  
And hopefully this year, we'll be able to really do something with that new attitude!

We'll see. Everyone's excited. And we're off to a good start.

-Mr. Anderson_  
_


	2. Day Five: Spirit Week Begins!

_**Camp: Day 5 **__**(Spirit Week begins!)**_

_**Alaina Simmons:**_

_Spirit week is so much fun! It's easily my favorite part of band camp. Today was "Dress-Like-A-Pirate-Day". I don't really care about pirates, but it was still fun to laugh at people who went all-out. Danny, that sax freshman who keeps getting called out, really went insane. Typical sax player. Still, I wouldn't have thought someone so quiet and reserved would get that into it. Especially a freshman! He surprised me because most of the freshmen are still acting scared and all. _

_I almost dropped my flute today when RACHEL "bumped into me". UGH! I've decided that I hate that girl! She's so stuck up! She thinks she's the only one who's right about anything. And she does this annoying eye-roll thing whenever someone doesn't agree with her. The poor freshmen. I feel so bad for them sometimes; especially when she'll call them out and be like, "No, ya'll are doing it wrong!" and then not do anything to help them. She's such a bitch. I never noticed it before! Something must have happened with her over the summer. Maybe she couldn't get a boyfriend and is just being all bitchy about it because she's upset. Whatever. Everything else is good. Oh, and the solo is being played by ME. I don't care WHAT Rachel says, I don't care that she's section leader and I'm not. I've practiced it and I want it and she can bite me if she has anything else to say about it. And that's just how it's going to be. _

_I talked more to Colin today. He's single…Not that I ASKED him or anything! I heard about it from one of my friends who's in the pit. She said Colin's been single for a long time. I wonder why that is! He's GORGEOUS! And he's GOOD. At drums, I mean. _

_Though, hopefully I'll be able to find out what ELSE he's good at soon. He he. _

_I'm tired. It's hot. I'm going to die if I have to be out here any longer._

-Alaina

**==Alaina, this is all fine and good, but what do you think about the BAND?==  
-Anderson**

_____________________________________________________________________________________

**Souji Minegawa:**

_Pirates and ninjas, that is all that this band is thinking about today. I do not know how ninjas are the same to pirates, but everyone is talking about them today!  
Josh, I think his name is. He came up to me and said, "Do your ninja thing" today. He smiled. Maybe he wasn't being mean when he said that. Later in the lunch time, he asked me to sit with him and his friends. They were nice, but very crazy and loud._

Josh seems to know everybody in the band. All of the girls, though. They are his friends. My section leader told me he is gay. It does not bother me, but I wonder why he is so outward. It makes me uncomfortable

Band in Japan is not like in America. When my brother was marching in the band in Japan, they did not have practice all day.  
Everything is different. The people are very different too. And they touch each other a lot. I cannot understand why they want to touch each other so much. In Japan, we do not touch because it is impolite. Maybe people here do not worry about that.

_That oboe player tried to touch me today. I do not even know her, but she looked sad so I stopped. She said her name is Sam. I cannot understand Americans. Isn't 'Sam' a boy name? I asked her and she said it is 'short for Samantha'. I am glad her name has a short, because I cannot pronounce 'Samantha'. I have heard some things about Sam. I do not know if I will believe them or not. _

_She told me she knows some Japanese. We talked a little bit because she knows Japanese well. She did not seem like an evil person when we talked. She seemed like a nice person._

_And I was happy that somebody understood me. A lot of people do not understand what I am saying sometimes. They correct me a lot. And there are some words I didn't know that they have told me. 'Aquafina'? 'Coordinate'? I cannot even say these words right. I also learned some other words that I am probably getting in trouble for if I say them here._

Band is hard. I did not know what my brother was saying when he told me how hard it was to do band. There is a lot of things to do with it. All the muscles in my body are hurting. 

_This year is special they have told me. I hope that I can survive. _

**-Souji Minegawa**  
_____________________________________________________________________________________

**Samantha Snow:**

_Dear diary, I'm sorry that I didn't write yesterday. I didn't feel up to it. There are so many things that have been happening recently that have just been…hard to cope with. I will survive it, though…Even though it's tough and it rips at my soul. I suppose I better talk about the band, because nobody else should have to know what I've been feeling about the other things. Nobody else should have to suffer…_

Band has gotten a little bit better, which is something that I wasn't really expecting to happen. At the very least, Josh is talking to me again…Not friendly talking…But at least he'll acknowledge my existence now. There's something to be less sad about.

The freshmen have been kind of distant from me, though. I think that they've heard about that rumor…The one that SHE spread last year that everyone believes. It kills me to know that the freshmen have been set against me already…Though I shouldn't really be surprised, should I? Popular girls…They always have their way. And that boy, Bryan…That trumpet player? He's trying to convince people that I'm evil. I'm not evil, I'm just misunderstood…People don't even TRY to understand me. They just go on thinking whatever those girls tell them to think. Except for the new freshman boy, Souji. He's nice. He gave me a chance.

I still don't know what Anderson and Collins want me to write in here…Nothing's really happened with the whole band. Except for spirit week. 

_Spirit week…Why the hell do we have this pointless week of dressing funny? It's still band…Though, I guess if we had a 'dress the color of your soul' day, I'd partake of that…_

Except that I'd probably pass out from the amount of black that I'd be wearing…

**-Sam**

**==Sam, let's talk.==**

**-Collins : )**

**_____________________________________________________________________________________**

**Andrew Wilcox**__

Carl, Carl, Carl! It's all about Carl, all the time! All I ever hear is, 'Drew, Carl's been doing this', 'Drew, fix Carl', 'Drew, it's all your fault that that IDIOT can't control himself during rehearsal!'. Blah blah blah blah blah, I'm SO sick of him! When he's not harassing the ONLY freshman girl in our section, he's trying to do my job for me, which is COMPLETELY uncalled for! I know what I'm doing! He's such an idiot! I wish he'd stop trying so hard to F-up my senior year and my only shot at section leader! I've worked really really hard to get where I am, and Carl's freakin' HELL-BENT on messing up the entire thing!  
I don't know what his beef is, but he needs to grill it up and eat it before someone gets hurt!

It wouldn't be much of a problem if it wasn't every SINGLE day, every time I try to make a decision, every time I'm trying to teach, every single time I'm trying to make a difference to the people in this band! He doesn't even know what he's doing! He's trying to make this into a power-struggle and it doesn't need to be that way! It CAN'T be that way. Not this year! Not the year that it really really matters!

The other section leaders have been really good about pointing out the problems with my section. It's really getting frustrating because it's only Day 5, and there are a bunch of new people, and we're a young section, and THEY don't have to put up with a blundering idiot every single day. How many times will I have to point this out to them before they'll stop being assholes? They should be supportive! If they have a problem, they should come see me and help me figure out how to fix it! At least that would show me that they care and that they're not just talking about it to make small talk! I don't want to hear about how the freshmen aren't getting it and how the upperclassmen don't seem to care much and how everyone else's section is so much better. And I REALLY don't want to hear about it in the hallway, being discussed by other people who aren't even directly involved! Again, they need to see ME about it, not talk to everyone who ISN'T me about how much we suck. And it's all because of Carl. Stupid, ADHD, annoying-as-hell Carl!

So many people say, "Well, it's not his fault" and crap, but there's a point where you CHOOSE to act a certain way. I don't care what they say, it IS his choice to be a jackass to the freshmen and to contradict and challenge every single thing I say.

Section leader isn't supposed to be this hard! Nobody else has to deal with him! This is ridiculous…And damn…it's only the 5_th__ day of camp. How am I supposed to put together this sax section when we're already having problems? If I had a co-section leader it would be a lot easier…But nobody else seems to want to step up._

And I really don't blame them.

**-Drew**

**==Drew, see me immediately.==**

**-Anderson**

**_____________________________________________________________________________________**

**Bryan Sykes**__

The operation for eradicating the zombie oboe player has begun. I won't go into details here, because if I do, someone will interfere…And I can't have that. We have to be careful…Not trust any woodwimps…Be on guard for soul-leechers! 

_Agents Odyssey and Iliad have been working out the logistics…At command, we are always watching for zombie influence…Especially in freshmen. We must warn them against the threat of de-humanization that the zombie oboe player can bring about! They must be protected at all costs!_

Looking out for freshmen has been a hard job, though. Mountain Dew shall be needed as proper sustenance.  
The section has been fine, so far. Usually I do not care very much about other trumpets because I'm always superior, but…Desperate times call for desperate measures. It is my job to protect their innocent souls from the influence of the evil zombie woodwimp queen and her allies.  
As soon as she makes a move…BAM! It will be the end of her!

Or the end of us…And I can't have that either.

The big question is whether or not her soul-leeching powers are contagious. If she bites one of us, we will become…one of them. And the more people we have on our side, the better. She will feel da painzzz before she looks upon a brass member as an ally! Zombies are never to be trusted…Especially woodwimp zombies…

The hour will come where she will be relinquished of her powerz of zombification! What a great hour that will be!!

Until then…I remain on guard! Ph34r!!!!

**-Sykes**

**==Bryan, I swear I will take you off of this journaling team if I hear one more word about zombies or evil oboe players! Last warning!==  
-Collins**

**_____________________________________________________________________________________**

**Josh Peters**__

I really don't have much to say…I have a LOT that I REALLY don't want to talk about right now, so I won't. Things are confusing as hell…Especially with Sam…Especially after what she did…But I don't want to talk about that. So…I'm just going to talk about band.

Band is going okay. Our section is fun. The freshmen aren't scared of me anymore, so that's a nice change. And that new clarinet freshman, Souji…He's a nice guy. My gayness doesn't bother him and that's a _**VERY **__nice change. I think we're going to turn out to be good friends. There's something about him that intrigues me…In a totally non-gay way.  
He's so not my type, anyway._

_The saxophones have been having a lot of trouble. It's Carl, of course…It's always Carl. But Drew's been handling it as best he can, I'm sure. He's still been doing a hell of a job in my opinion. It's not his fault he has to deal with Carl. I wouldn't want to have to deal with Carl, myself._

This year's going to be a good year for us, though. I can tell. People actually GET ALONG this year! And Nate's gone, so I won't have to worry about him tormenting me anymore. Homophobe…

James has been doing a lot of good things with our section. We're having a movie-night at his house this weekend…After section unity day. He has a pool, too, so it's going to be a lot of fun.

I'm thinking about trying out for section leader after this year. I think I'd do a good job. And I have a lot of ideas about how to make next year interesting even though it isn't a BOA year.  
_  
Pirate day was fun. I think MY costume was the best, but a lot of people thought it was a bit too much…Must've been the fishnets. Oh well.  
The girls liked it, at least…Ugh. Not that THAT matters._

_I have a lot of work I have to do when I get home, so I have to wrap this up. Like, now.  
_**  
-Josh : )**

**_____________________________________________________________________________________**

**Amy Mapes  
==Absent==**

**-Confirmed by Anderson**

**_____________________________________________________________________________________**

**Adam Engle**__

A lot of rumors have been flying around about me. Some of them are true, but there are a few that aren't.  
It's not my fault what happened with Alyssa. Just throwing that out there.

Euphs are great, as always. Push-ups and then some. We're going to start running. Usually we just mess around a lot because, well, we're low brass. But this year's different. This year, we're making finals.  
And I'm making Vanguard. Colin and I are going to audition together. Last year, things didn't work out so well, but this year is different. I'm ready. I know it. And if they don't accept me, then I'm going for Devils. I've secured a spot in Blue Devils B already, but I really want to do Vanguard.

Steele's been a jerk. I don't know what's up with him. I think he really believes that the…Alyssa thing…was entirely my fault. She IS his ex, but still! Bros before hoes, right?  
If he'd just listen to me…He'd know the truth. But that stubborn idiot won't. And he complains about nobody listening to _**him**__. Ha._

Not much else to say. ****

-Engle

_____________________________________________________________________________________

**Beth Erickson**__

Yeah, so…Tubas are good. Shoulders hurt, sunburned as hell, welcome back to band camp.  
Chris has finally accepted that I'm section leader. We had a talk…It went pretty well. I didn't want to make him feel like he can't help out or anything, but I let him know that teaching is mostly my job. Still, it was fun to split up into groups: three to a person. Chris got three, I got three. It was a lot more personal too. Easier to work with.

Collins was pretty funny with that joke about the cactus. I don't remember it, but I think I need to get some pepper-spray.

Wow, that sentence above, if you're not me, makes no sense. Oh well.

Drew and I had a talk about power struggles. I think I relate to him a bit better than the other section leaders because of Chris and everything. I just wish there was a way I could help him. Chris isn't like Carl at all…Chris is actually pretty quiet. Carl's a freakin' volcano that just spews out everything at once. I don't envy Drew for having to put up with that every day.

Trombones are close as ever. They're a little bit exclusive of Amy, their freshman girl, though. She and I seem to get along pretty well. She's cool. Down-to-earth. I wish she were a tuba sometimes, because then we could hang out more. Another section I've noticed that is getting to be real close is the mellos. Wonder what that will turn into. Josh was talking about a party on Friday, after section unity day (our color is red, btw) at James's house. Sounds like fun.

Josh and Sam are talking again. That's good to see. I don't think they're on friendly terms yet, but…I honestly don't blame Josh after what Sam did to him. Not that I like to see her suffer either, it's just…Karma, I guess? I don't know. Maybe she deserves to have some time to think about what she did. Alone. Without friends.  
I feel horrible for saying that, but…It's not like she did something that's easy to forgive. Especially to Josh.

Anyway, this is getting off-topic. Gotta go. Stuff to do.

**-Beth**

**_____________________________________________________________________________________**

**Colin Sanders**

_The battery needs more work. The quads have been fine, as always, and the snares are getting cleaner, but those basses need help! I can forgive freshmanity to an extent, but after day 4, I expect you to know your stuff! We don't have time to keep working the same fundamentals and grids over and over again.  
Third-bass was given to a freshman and it's very obvious. The guy's been pretty good about his doubles, but he needs to pay attention better. And bass five just doesn't care, which is REALLY annoying.  
Freshmen don't understand how important BOA years are…And no amount of push-ups can teach them desire.  
The guy's good, but he needs an attitude adjustment._

Patch thinks I'm working too hard, whatever the hell that means. Some crap about 'You're exhausted and you worry too much' and 'It's getting to you already' and stuff.  
He doesn't understand. He doesn't have to live in Andrew's shadow. I have to work my ass off. It's expected of me.

How did my brother make it look so easy? He made it look effortless…Maybe it was the fact that he didn't care about anything. Everyone thought he did, but he didn't really. It was just an act and everyone bought into it…Except me.  
They didn't have to live with him.

Working hard for Vanguard. Patch says that competition is horrendous. Especially since Vanguard is World-Class. Engle says that I should go for Devils if Vanguard doesn't accept me…But they're even harder to get into. Blue Devils B isn't a World-Class corps, so I might go for Blue Knights if Vanguard's a no. ****

-Colin

**==You're not Andrew, man. Don't try to be him, be Colin. No pressure.==**

**-Patch**

**_____________________________________________________________________________________**

**Lois Cox**

_Sounds like Patch is looking for a different 5__th__-bass person. I don't want to march that much, but nobody else does either. Someone told me that the drill this year is going to be hard, so I guess that's why nobody wants to do it.  
I have a feeling that it's going to be me. Maybe I should just go volunteer right now.  
I'd be the only girl on the line, then._

_My hands hurt anyway. From the mallets. I'm getting blisters. Soon they'll be calluses. Rick showed me his calluses earlier today. Ew. But still, he plays the marimba really really well!_

Pirate day? Really? It must really be a band sort of thing because nobody in the battery or the pit dressed any different than usual. Apparently we're required to do section unity day, whatever that is, on Friday, though. Eh….Well, whatever.

Nothing interesting has happened yet. Being a freshman is tough…Especially being a freshman that just moved here. There are some pretty cool people in the pit, though. I don't know…Should I stay or go?

**-Lois**

**==Lois, either way, it's going to be a lot of work. It's up to you, ultimately. If you stay with the pit, you'll be stuck there all season. But same goes with the line. However, if you march bass this year, you have a good shot at graduating up to snare later on, if you want it. Your choice.==  
-Patch**

**_____________________________________________________________________________________**

**David Steele**__

I don't want to talk right now. Band is good.  
Except for everything that has nothing to do with music.

I hate being annoyed this early on in the season…But I've got some things to sort out with certain people. I can't believe it's only the fifth day of camp. Usually we're not having fights until a few more weeks have passed!

Anyway, I'm doing my best and…Maybe this year is a year where I'm going to have to help build the band up. I hope not, because there's SO much potential in this group. We could make Finals this year. We could make history! But right now we're just making problems. And that has to stop. We need to sort some things out. Especially among the section leaders.

Most of the problems are coming from them. I don't know if it was bad judgment on the directors' part or what, but some people who are section leaders definitely shouldn't be. You should never, ever be in it for yourself. You should always be in it for the team. Some of us have lost sight of that already.

I've gotta go fix some problems. Now. Before they get too big to handle.

**-Steele  
**

**==David, there's that 'honesty thing' we've been talking about. It's not BAD…Just be careful how you phrase things. You don't want to piss off anyone.==**

**-Collins : )**

**_____________________________________________________________________________________**

**Wes Collins: Co-Band Director**

_The kids are worrying too much. And this is coming from me, of all people!  
I see it especially in the section leaders. I understand that it is very important to some people that we make BOA Finals, and I'm not gonna lie, it's important to me too. But I think the answer is to chill out a little bit. We don't have to rip out each others' throats in order to be successful._

It's spirit week. Right now is when we're supposed to relax and get to know each other a little. It's important to build that foundation of trust before we jump into the hard stuff like drill (which is very cool this year…And hard! And fast!) and music and everything. This isn't the time to be arguing over solos or worrying about technicalities. That's next week. This week is about the fun part of marching band.

And I feel for our freshmen this year because it's tense and…probably not a lot of fun right now.  
I also feel for the seniors because they don't want to have to feel the loss of not making Finals again, after working so hard. So they're getting right down to business and skipping the fundamentals.

I think we need to step back and look at what we're doing to ourselves. We need to remember why we're here in the first place, and that's to make music and, above all, ENJOY it. It's so much easier to improve when we enjoy it. It's easier to get better when people want to be here.

Things will fall into place. I have no doubt. We need to chill a little bit, though, so that we don't burn ourselves out. BOA is a LONG way away, so we've got time to focus on details. We don't have to do everything right now.

To think that I'm saying this, of all people. 'Crazy Collins' they call me. And sometimes 'Cautious Collins' because I am very detail-oriented and I'm intense and I like to get the job done. But right now, I'm feeling like 'Cool Collins'.

Seriously, we just need to be calm. It'll work out. ****

-Collins

**  
****==Collins, you're far from cool. Very far.==  
-Anderson : P  
****  
==Collins, Anderson's right; you are soooo hot. Yowza!==  
-Patch  
****  
==Patch, I never want to hear the word 'Yowza' again.==  
-Collins : )  
________________________________________________________****_____________________________**


End file.
